AP Photo/Gerry Broome
- Family and loved ones gathered for the funeral of Andrew Brown Jr. in North Carolina on Monday.
- Brown's sons, Khalil and Jha'rod, expressed their love for their father during the service.
- Daunte Wright, Eric Garner, and George Floyd's family members were also in attendance.
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Family and loved ones gathered in honor of Andrew Brown Jr. at a funeral service at the Fountain of Life church in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, on Monday.
Brown Jr. was fatally shot by a Pasquotank sheriff deputy carrying out a search warrant on April 21. The 42-year-old was trying to flee the deputies when he was shot several times. An independent autopsy his family released revealed that Brown Jr. died from a gunshot wound in the back of his head.
His sons, wearing white suits, expressed their love for their father during the service.
"He would've loved this. I just wish he was here with us," Khalil Ferebee said. "As much as I'm going to wish and wish, wish all day, it's not going to happen."
Brown Jr.'s other son Jha'rod Ferebee called his father his best friend.
"We couldn't stay away from each other. I remember growing up, couldn't nobody tell me nothing wrong with my daddy," he said.
Brown Jr.'s death came the day after Derek Chauvin was found guilty for murdering George Floyd in Minnesota. During the funeral, Ben Crump, one of the lawyers representing the family said, "we could barely celebrate."
The killing sparked protests in Elizabeth City as demonstrators demand transparency from law enforcement and to release body camera footage of the incident. The family's legal team previously said they only viewed 20 seconds of the video.
At the funeral, Crump called for justice and for the video to be released.
AP Photo/Gerry Broome
"We are here to make this plea for justice because Andrew was killed unjustifiably as many Black men in America have been killed ... shot in the back, shot going away from the police," Crump said. "And because Andrew cannot make the plea for justice, it is up to us to make the plea for justice."
Reverend Al Sharpton delivered the eulogy. He called Brown Jr.'s death a "sign of the times," adding that "this must stop" and that "enough is enough."
"The challenge of these times is how we are going to deal with policing in America," Sharpton said.
Among the attendees were family members of Daunte Wright, George Floyd, and Eric Garner - all Black men who were killed by law enforcement. Floyd's sister and brother took to the podium to give remarks to the family.
"I said I was not going to attend another funeral after my brother. I feel the pain that this family is feeling. No matter the way it went, it was wrong," Bridgett Floyd said.
"You're part of us, man," Terrance Floyd told Brown's family. "I just want to let y'all know that we're there for y'all. We're connected."
Eric Garner's mother, Gwen Carr, echoed those sentiments: "I want to say to each and every one of you. I am with you. I know your pain. You will always have a friend in me."